Inevitable
by Caderyn
Summary: Angelina Johnson didn't fall in love with George Weasley after Fred died, but years before, when she was still dating Fred & they were all still students at Hogwarts. Fred unknowingly brought them together. George/Angelina.


**Summary: The moment ****Angelina Johnson fell in love with George Weasley. It didn't happen after Fred died, but years before, when she was still dating Fred & they were all still students at Hogwarts****.**

**Disclaimer: ****Harry**** Potter**** and all related character belong to the great ****J.****K.**** Rowling, who is now even more magnificent in my eyes when she announced that George ended up married to Angelina****! Thank you, JKR! Their love story, though off-screen, is now my favorite among all in the HP world.  
**

**A/N: I wrote this years ago after JKR's announcement above & never got around to posting it. At the time, I had some plot bunnies to follow, but now I'd forgotten them all, so this could just be seen as a standalone or even a companion to my other George/Angelina story, "Love Bite" (wrote that in 2004 before we knew George & Angelina ended together, woo!).  
**

**Inevitable**

Angelina Johnson remembered the exact moment she fell in love with him. It wasn't, as most people assumed, after the death of his twin. And it didn't happen because she was missing Fred, her ex-boyfriend, and needed a 'substitute'. No, she had been in love with George Weasley for years, ever since they were still teenagers at Hogwarts… And he was in love with her too, even if he couldn't - wouldn't - admit it out of some intrinsic loyalty to his twin.

It was the summer before their seventh year. She had been going out with Fred since the Yule Ball. She couldn't say that she had had a definite crush on Fred before the Ball. She could always tell the twins apart, but she didn't fancy one over the other before Fred had asked her out. She was happy to go with him, of course, but truth be told, she would've been just as pleased if George had been the one to ask her. She did, however, have such a blast with Fred at the Ball that she started seeing him in a new light. They began dating soon after that.

It was fun, light, and easy… Not much different from when they were spending time together as friends, though now there were the extra perks of pashing and private dates around the castle. She didn't think she could be happier.

On his part, George was thrilled for his twin. He'd always liked Angelina and thought of her as the exact type of girl that Fred should be dating. They still hung out together, just the three of them, but George never felt like the third wheel.

It was odd. They had this balance worked out.

That all changed, however, on one momentous evening, in which Fred was unable to make it to a date with Angelina. He had foolishly tried on a new invention on himself and it had failed spectacularly. Unfortunately, the twins hadn't quite worked out an antidote other than to wait for the effects to wear down. The bottom line was, Fred was undeniably incapacitated to meet his girlfriend.

However, cancelling on her was also out of the question. He had been calling off their dates much too often recently, mostly due to commitments to the Order. Angelina was understanding enough, since she knew it had something to do with Dumbledore, but he reckoned that she would not have been _that_ understanding tonight. And her temper was legendary.

The solution was obvious… Or at least Fred thought so.

"You are bonkers, mate. Angelina's not thick. She's always been able to tell us apart," George had said at the time, as Fred threw his clothes at him and then proceeded to spray him all over with his cologne.

"She won't know. Trust me," Fred had replied with a wide grin as he pointed his wand at George's hair to make it ressemble his even more. "I'm sure you can do a convincing me, Gred. Of course you're not _quite_ as good-looking and dashing as me, but you will have to do in such short notice. No time to brew a Polyjuice, after all."

George frowned and was about to rudely retort when Fred added, "And you even have my permission to snog her if you think that would perfect the prank."

George was so taken aback by this statement that he paused in the process of putting on Fred's robes. Typical of Fred to think of this as a prank. It really is a special girl who could, not only put up with all of their jokes and, uh, mischiefs, but also match them. George involuntarily smiled at all the times Angelina had managed to best the twins at their own game. He realised then that he _must_ do this for Fred, if only to make sure his brother hang on to a great girl.

Fred, who was oblivious to his twin's internal musing, continued jabbering as he put the last touches in George's appearance, "Of course the jig might be up when she realised you're not as good a pash as me."

That snapped George out of his reverie and he delivered the nasty comeback that he'd neglected earlier.

On the way to his - well, Fred's - date, George kept on muttering, "This is mental, this is mental," to himself. Upon seeing Angelina though, he was quick to put on his 'Fred' face and greeted her like he knew Fred would. He was committed to this.

She looked at him oddly for a second - he was sure that she saw right through him - but then she smiled, entwined his hand with hers and simply said, "Shall we go then, _Fred_?"

It was in the way she said his twin's name that he knew she knew. But he also knew Angelina and understood exactly what she was doing. She saw this a challenge and she wasn't one to ever back down from a challenge. She wanted to see how far he was willing to take it before he revealed everything.

He grinned at her sillyness. Who did she think she was dealing with? A Weasley never backed down from anything. He untangled his hand from hers and draped his arm around her shoulders, pulling her closer and giving her his most dashing smile.

Angelina resisted the urge to roll her eyes. Of course he would do this. Unfazed, she returned the smile with her particularly pouty one that Fred liked and circled her arm around his waist.

They walked like that all the way to the restaurant. It was surprisingly _not_ uncomfortable.

Neither was dinner. They talked so easily that they both often forgot he was supposed to be someone else. Angelina had even forgotten to be angry at Fred for having the nerve to send George, rather than tell her the truth about why he couldn't be there. She thought it was simply because she had always been at complete ease with both Weasley twins. Even after she and Fred became a couple, she didn't really mind if George joined in in their supposed alone time. In fact, sometimes she would ask him to come along. Some things were much more fun with _both_ of them there, after all.

In hindsight, she supposed she should've taken that as a sign.

It wasn't until the end of the night that they were both jolted back to this 'game' they were playing. George had casually taken her hand and they were now walking slowly in silence. They could've easily apparated home, since they'd both passed the test and would've normally been eager to use it anytime and everywhere they could, but they needed to bide time. Both knew what was coming and neither was sure on what to do.

Fred _did_ give his permission… And in some twisted way, Fred wouldn't have wanted George to 'lose' to Angelina, he was sure of that. It was Fred's prank and he was _that_ competitive.

He decided to throw all cautions to the wind and stopped in his tracks to face Angelina, taking both of her hands in his. "You're welcome, Ange, m'dear. I've had a splendid night too," he said while grinning broadly.

"I hadn't said anything," she smiled knowingly back, looking up at him.

"I know. I was just pre-empting. How could my company be _anything_ less than splendid? It's obviously why you're such a nutter for me."

She resisted the urge to chuckle. Instead, she took a step closer to George and looked him straight in the eye, all the while ignoring the sudden rapid beating of her heart. "Is that so, huh?" she asked him with all the flirtiness she could muster, tightening the hold on his hands. "From the way all of our dates usually end, I could've sworn you're the one who's barking mad for me."

Warning bells were going off in George's head, but there was no way he could back down now. He looked down at her, inching his face closer to hers, and whispered in her ear, "Well, don't go spreading that around. I have a reputation to keep, you know. Let's just keep it as our little secret, okay?"

He didn't know what the hell he was doing. Suddenly he was feeling way too hot. Angelina's scent was filling up his nostrils and it was intoxicating. He couldn't keep his thoughts straight. He also couldn't take his eyes off her face. Her chocolate skin, tinged with a slight perspiration, was dewy from the balmy evening and her eyes were sparkling with curiosity as she gazed up at him. When did she become so bloody damn gorgeous?

On her part, Angelina also couldn't stop staring at him. It _was_ Fred's face, but it wasn't… It was surreal… His mere whisper in her ear had made her shiver! She was starting to feel uneasy from the proximity and the lack of talking, so she plastered a nervous smile to her face, expecting him to break the joke any second now. But then his gaze fell to her mouth and she instinctively licked her lips, all thoughts of the prank vanishing from her brain.

Acting on impulse, their faces moved even closer until their cheeks touched and their mouths hovered over one another, eyes fluttering shut. They could feel each other's warm breaths… One beat, two beat, three beat… And then slowly they closed the distance between their lips.

The kiss was tentative at first, soft, simply testing the feel of each other's lips being pressed together. They broke apart soon after but neither pulled away.

They watched each other silently , slightly with shock, and it was as if something cllicked then, some spark ignited between them. Neither George nor Angelina could say who reached for the other first. Suddenly his arms were encircling her waist, pulling her flush against him, and hers were around his neck, hands tangled in his hair. And they were kissing each other more fully now, more passionately, mouths opening and tongues battling.

Angelina could feel her pulse quickening, her stomach twisting, and goosebumps suddenly errupting all over her skin. It was nothing like other kisses she'd had in the past. She was kissing George like she needed to, desperately, as if her sense of being alive depended on it. She was holding on to him tightly, with not an inch between them, because her legs felt like jelly and she feared that she would melt to the ground if he ever let her go. It sounded so dramatic but she couldn't explain it any other way.

They broke apart for air, but not for long because George was soon kissing her again, cupping her face and backing her against the wall of the nearest building. She moved her hands up and down his sides and to his back, enjoying the feel of every muscle underneath her fingers. He soon reciprocated by sliding his hands down her arms and then to her waist and hip, memorising every soft curve, and finally resting at the small of her back.

George was simply running on instinct now. His head was swirling with the feel of Angelina against him, her scent, taste, and soft warm skin… He took his lips off of hers and brought them to her neck, placing light kisses underneath her jawline.

Angelina moaned in pleasure, but then uttered the start of the word that jolted them back to reality, "Geo-" She stopped herself in time, but the damage was done.

He was supposed to be _Fred_. She was supposed to be kissing _Fred_, but even in the, uh, heat of passion, Angelina hadn't failed to distinguish between them. She wasn't even _pretending_ to be kissing her bofriend and somehow that made it all real.

And all the more horrible.

They weren't just playing a game and this wasn't something they could just brush aside.

George backed away from her in a flash and refused to meet her eyes. "Um, well, thanks for the evening… That was… great. I'll… owl you."

"Uh, yeah, that would be great." Angelina was also determined not to look at him by busying herself smoothing the nonexisting crease in her clothes.

"Great."

Neither moved though and an extremely awkward silence hung in the air between them.

Finally, Angelina cracked first. She muttered a quick "Okay, well, see you," and dispparated with a loud pop before George even had a chance to say goodbye. He sincerely hoped she hadn't splinched herself.

George stood rooted to the spot, trying to figure out what he would tell Fred. The twins kept barely any secrets from each other and they lied to each other even rarer. Fred would sure see right through him. He felt instantly wretched that he had had done something he needed to hide from Fred. But telling him was out of the question. This betrayal was just too despicable.

What the hell happened with Angelina back then? He couldn't understand it. Sure he had always found her pleasant to look at, but he never thought he was attracted to her. He was not even jealous of his brother when the two began dating.

But tonight, stepping in Fred's shoes, had made him feel… ironically _freer_, somehow, to feel whatever he wanted to feel for Angelina.

Perhaps he had in fact liked her all this time, but had never _let_ himself realise it because she had been a mate for the longest time and Fred's girlfriend as of late.

He couldn't deny the fact that there was something between them now, something very real and irreversible. Now that they both realised they felt… something for each other, they couldn't continue being Fred's happy girlfriend and brother…

… Could they?

George knew that he had to try, though, because Fred was the last person he would ever want to disappoint. His feelings for Angelina would just have to be put in the back burner. There was no other alternative.

So with that in mind, George plastered on his most carefree smile and disapparated home to face Fred.

At the same time, as soon as Angelina apparated - fortunately, all in one piece - back home, she crumpled to the ground as if she'd been hit with the jelly-legs jinx, her legs seemingly unable to bear the weight of her thoughts.

It was just all too overwhelming.

She had just kissed her boyfriend's brother.

Actually, not just brother… His twin, whom she could _always_ tell apart from own her boyfriend, whom she hadn't failed to distinguish even as she was pashing him.

What was the matter with her?

She absently brought her hands to her lips. George had felt different… It wasn't that Fred was a bad snogger… No, not at all. But George did something to her, had this intense effect on her, that she couldn't explain.

It was like… electricity went through her body when he kissed her.

And Angelina was not stupid enough to imagine that she'd only felt that way because she was pretending he was Fred. She wished she could delude herself into thinking that, but she knew then that things had changed now for good.

She was in love with George Weasley.

What kind of a dungbomb mess had she got herself into?

She was going out with one twin but in love with the other.

She had to tell Fred. It wouldn't be fair to either of them, and to George, if they continued dating.

Whether or not George would want her afterwards was another matter. The thought depressed her, as she knew George well enough to know that he would never ever betray Fred.

Maybe she could just forget the whole mess and make life simpler for everybody by continuing to see Fred?

She was at a loss of what to do. Groaning outwardly into the empty room, she hastily discarded her clothes and crawled into bed. Her thoughts were still filling with the memory of her kiss with George and the guilt she felt towards Fred when sleep finally claimed her.

**A/N: How's that for my first post on this site in four years? I groaned at some of the use of cliches on this fic, but I couldn't think of a decent place to leave it. As we all know, they ended up married, but in my head, they went through a whole lot of grief & guilt to get there, just due to their history & circumstances. Reviews are appreciated. Do we all love George/Angelina as much as I do? **


End file.
